Disclaimer: I started this piece after patiently waiting. I didn't want to fall into any cliched viewpoint or politically incorrect trap. Sadly, the French flag takeover of Facebook and all social media thereafter drove me into a frenzy. I never published it in fear of a backlash. So now that the year is over and everyone is now holding a light saber instead of being superimposed into a translucent French flag - I'll post.
I feel awful about Paris. I even shed tears. However, I have zero alliance to Paris. Let me elaborate. I've visited for a few days and hours. I've been to all the places that those who have never been hold dear. I generally didn't like Paris and I don't long for it as I do other parts of France. Here's the thing… I find it very hard to believe that terrorism affects places that don't seem like targets. I have to repeatedly ask myself why. This sort of correlates with why does God "take" people and why are we even here. Seriously, why did two towers full of people have to come down? And the even bigger question is why did we have to replace those towers with one bigger, stronger and taller? I traveled through cities that were occupied by Hitler, bombed, flooded, engulfed in flames and or faced terrorist acts. There was never any evidence. There were no plaques. No monuments. No substitutions. Not even replacements. Things were simply restored to their original glory. Atocha. King's Crossing. Nantes. Only museums, history books, Wikipedia and those that lived through it could ever tell. We, America, are the only country who experiences disasters, wars and terror and take it in a completely different direction. We avenge our flags (the American flag, the Tea Party flag, the Confederate flag), our buildings, our landmarks but never our own people. I never wept for the Eiffel tower or for the French flag. I cried for the loss of lives. France was remarkable in the sense that they immediately wanted to avenge their people. They don't care for prayers, towers or principles. They countered same day. I wish I could say the same for us.
I feel awful about Paris. I even shed tears. However, I have zero alliance to Paris. Let me elaborate. I've visited for a few days and hours. I've been to all the places that those who have never been hold dear. I generally didn't like Paris and I don't long for it as I do other parts of France. Here's the thing… I find it very hard to believe that terrorism affects places that don't seem like targets. I have to repeatedly ask myself why. This sort of correlates with why does God "take" people and why are we even here. Seriously, why did two towers full of people have to come down? And the even bigger question is why did we have to replace those towers with one bigger, stronger and taller? I traveled through cities that were occupied by Hitler, bombed, flooded, engulfed in flames and or faced terrorist acts. There was never any evidence. There were no plaques. No monuments. No substitutions. Not even replacements. Things were simply restored to their original glory. Atocha. King's Crossing. Nantes. Only museums, history books, Wikipedia and those that lived through it could ever tell. We, America, are the only country who experiences disasters, wars and terror and take it in a completely different direction. We avenge our flags (the American flag, the Tea Party flag, the Confederate flag), our buildings, our landmarks but never our own people. I never wept for the Eiffel tower or for the French flag. I cried for the loss of lives. France was remarkable in the sense that they immediately wanted to avenge their people. They don't care for prayers, towers or principles. They countered same day. I wish I could say the same for us.
